The school decided to close Ewha Swimming Pool for renovation due to its deteriorated facilities on Feb. 28. Community Sports Education Center, the College of Science and Industry Convergence and the Office of Facilities Management announced the closure on the school’s website.

The Office of Facilites Management has examined the pool’s conditions since its winter closure last year and concluded that substantial renovation is essential for sustainable operation. They are also planning to have systematic renovation to strengthen laws and regulations. However, the reopening day of the pool to the Ewha family remains unclear.

This decision on renovation reflected Ewha students’ strong demand on maintaining the pool. Last winter, a controversy arose over the closure of the pool as many students rejected to the school’s plan to replace the pool with a different facility.

“We will consider the safety, the sustainability and the students’ rights to learn as top priorities,” the Office of Facilities Management commented. “We plan to try our best to minimize inconveniences that can be caused due to the closure.”

Nevertheless, some students still doubted the school’s announcement, worrying that this closure could be permanent.

“I was confused when I found out about the closure, as I was looking forward to using the pool in March,” said Kim Su-yin, a sophomore majoring in Nursing Science. “I’m also disappointed that the school notified the closure unilaterally all of a sudden. Right now, I am most worried about whether the pool will reopen or not.”

On the other hand, Lim Jiwon, a sophomore majoring in Communication and Media responded positively on this closure.

“It’s good that the school is trying to renovate the pool continuously,” Lim said. “The fact that the school tries to maintain the pool matters. The only thing that I don’t want is shutting it down.”